Ballerina
by moonflora
Summary: The only thing she has on her mind is ballet, and things were going exactly how she wanted them to. But when there are two new boys in town, things start to get messy. T for swearing.
1. Chapter 1

The first time Mikan Sakura got drunk was when she was fifteen, and to her, it wasn't all that great. She truly didn't see the attraction, but as her eyes scrutinized the scene in front of her, she began to realize that there had to be something that made people _want_ to act stupid and crazy. Mikan squinted her eyes, Nope, Still couldn't see it.

She was at a party at someone's house, she couldn't remember who's party it was, (one of Luna's mates she suspected) but it was a drag. She was folded into a deck chair, Her best friend Luna had let out a long high pitched laugh as she sat comfortably on some random's knee. Luna was off her trolly, claiming to have had four bottles of Corona already. Either that or she was faking it, again. Mikan tied her hair in a pony, grabbed her tote bag and jacket, before signalling at Luna that she was leaving. Luna tilted her head and let out a pout.

"Why?" Luna slurred and stretched out the why so much it was beginning to sound more like 'wheeeyyyyy'

Mikan put on a smile while wrapping her scarf around her neck, "Practice tomorrow' She replied, patting her duffle bag. "You know how Jinno gets when I'm late."

Luna nodded and went back to her drunken conversation with Dumb and Dumber. As Mikan made her way back through the house and through the front door she said goodbye to a few known faces, eager to get out. As she wondered down the streets to the station she contemplated wether to call her Mum to pick her up, or catch the 11pm train to Central Town, a two minute walk from where she lived. She checked her phone; 10.47pm, She could wait for the train, she enjoyed the ride anyway. After paying for a ticket she strode over to the Women's bathroom to fix her make up. Mikan almost cringed at her reflection, upon getting ready for the party Luna had insisted on doing her make up, she had caked Mikan's face in Mascara, eye liner, red lipstick and a few layers of foundation which had made an obvious contrast to her neck.

Grabbing a paper towel Mikan, dampened it, before wiping all of her face-cake off. She then reached in her bag for a purse and put on some light nude lipstick and a stroke of mascara. She liked simple and barely there make up better than the paint the face look. It suited her better too.

Mikan studied her reflection, pulling out her ponytail she let soft brown waves cascade to her waist. She loved her hair, She had titled it her best attribute. This didn't make herself vain or up herself, as she didn't boast about her good points. She merely liked a part of herself and there was no crime in that. Her eyes were a dull brown and in her opinion; too close together. Her nose was slightly upturned and a few unnoticeable freckles had been sprinkled over it. She was clad in a pink scarf, black button up coat and the end of her light pink dress could be seen under it. Mikan was wearing these horrible heels that made her ankles ache, They looked good, she had admitted to herself, but were very painful. She slid them off and gently put them in her duffle bag, making a mental note to give them back to Luna tomorrow. Mikan was almost eighteen, but yet she was small and thin, and looked like she would break if you touched her. Although she had a sulky face, her personality was normally happy and energetic.

Remembering that her train would be departing soon, Mikan hurried over to Platform 4 barefooted, ignoring the looks from other passengers as she climbed onto the train. Mikan sat by the window, resting her head against the glass. She looked down at her naked feet, they weren't the best looking feet, She thought to herself. her toenail was bent awkwardly and the edges of her feet had been bruised and scratched.

"Ouch."

Mikan's head turned towards whoever had spoken. Standing above her was a boy, no more than nineteen she guessed. His face was furrowed and framed by his blonde hair. All of a sudden Mikan felt embarrassed, and tried to hide her feet.

"It's fine." She replied hurriedly. His eyes met hers, they were a sea-blue, and quite nice. He let out a slow smile and Mikan realized his smile was quite nice too. She was abruptly snapped out of her gaze as a loud voice filled the train.A tall boy with black hair and olive skin had walked through the door to their carriage.

"Ruka, Stop changing carriages or I shit you not - " He cut off as he met eyes with Mikan, He was handsome, but in a different way to the boy who was standing next to her.

"Natsume." The blonde boy addressed, grinning. Natsume nodded, his eyes still on Mikan.

"Who's that?" He questioned rudely. Mikan's blood instantly boiled, impoliteness was definitely something she could not stand.

"My name is Mikan." She replied coldly, "Don't talk about me as if I'm not here."

Natsume raised his hands, palms forward in mock surrender. "Sorry to upset you, Princess. Are there anymore 'rules about Mikan' I have to follow or…?'

Mikan rolled her eyes, Ruka turned towards her; "Sorry, Mikan. Don't take it personally, he's normally this rude." Mikan smiled slightly at the small joke. "So what school do you go to?"

"Alice Academy," She replied.

Natsume let out a snort before sitting in the seat in front of her, body turned towards her. "Makes sense."

Mikan's eyes narrowed. She knew what kind of reputation Alice Academy had, it was a posh private school where the students worked hard to become politicians or lawyers in the footsteps of their parents. A vast majority of them considered themselves above students of other schools, therefore acquiring the label of 'snob' or 'stuck up'

"And exactly _how _does it 'make sense'?' She snapped. His eyes, she realized, were a brilliant red. Contacts maybe?

Natsume shrugged, "Take a look at yourself, Princess." He started, "That scarf probably costs more than my house."

Mikan turned bright red and tried to hide the imprinted_ Chanel _logo on her cashmere scarf. She admitted she was quite well off money-wise, but she was raised to treat people equally as who they are, not the measure of their wealth.

"So what school do you go to?" She asked Ruka, eagerly wanting to change subject.

Ruka glanced at Natsume, "We used to go to Seaview High, but…" He trailed off

"We got kicked out." Natsume finished dryly, as if it wasn't a big deal. Mikan frowned, Seaview was a bit of a way from here, at least an hours drive.

"Why?"

Natsume shrugged, "Some kid was picking a fight, he got one."

"Right." Mikan replied, not surprised at Natsume's attitude.

"So what about you, Princess? Out late on a school night are we?"

"I just came from a party."

"Oh, Isn't it a bit early to be coming back from a party? Or was it just a little gathering where you all sipped champagne and giggled at each other's experiences in foreign countries?"

"It was a party-party." Mikan snapped. "It just got boring because everyone was getting drunk and Luna -"

"Luna?" Ruka interrupted. "Luna Koizumi?, Blonde hair about yet long, bright blue eyes…?"

"Looks like a whore?" Natsume finished,

Mikan ignored Natsume's input "Yeah sounds right, How do you know her?"

Ruka let out a laugh "She's my cousin!"

"You're kidding!"

"Nah, We're staying with the Koizumi's until graduation. We're going to St. Michaels with her brother."

Mikan shot a look at Natsume, St Michaels was like, the boy version of Alice Academy. Not to mention it was right next door to Alice, They even shared a field. If he was so bias towards Alice Academy what is he doing going to St. Michaels.

"Before you call me a hypocrite, Princess. Let me tell you that we're only going to because Luna's dad did some intense negotiation, we just need to finish senior year and then we're out."

"Alright." Mikan said slowly, there were still holes here and there but these were people she'd just met 5 minutes ago. She didn't really care for their life story.

The stop for Esplanade pulled on and Mikan stood up to get off the train and into the tube. She waved a hand towards Natsume and Ruka as a goodbye and stepped off the train. She heard Natsume murmur something to Ruka and then he called out for her.

"Mikan!"

She turned around to see him running towards her. She stopped and waited.

"Yes?"

"Let me walk you home." He breathed, "It's too late for a girl of your size to be walking out alone."

Mikan was just about to retort to Natsume's comment about her smallness when she realized how handsome he really was. He was clad in a nay blue jacket and a black Guns and Roses t-shirt, Jeans and black chucks. His hands were stuffed in his pockets and his hair was tangled and messy. His eyes were boring into hers, they were captivating. His eye lashes were long for a boy, though his eyebrows were rather short she noticed.

He let out a slow grin. "What, Checking out my looks are we?"

"Yeah." Mikan replied with the same grin, feeling suddenly flirty "You'd be more attractive if you didn't' open that mouth of yours though."

Natsume let out a low laugh, "Come on, show me where you live. I'll walk you there so no bad guys come and hurt you."

"My hero." Mikan replied sarcastically. "How do I know you're not a bad guy? I only met you what, four, maybe five minutes ago?"

Natsume looked at her with a raised brow "I suppose you're just going to have to trust me."

Mikan looked him up and down, hesitating slightly. "I suppose."

Natsume stayed silent while Mikan led the way, he noticed a few jeers from some men outside a pub and grabbed her hand. She looked up at him questioningly

He rolled his eyes, "Don't get too excited, Princess. Just fulfilling my word of getting you home safe." Mikan still didn't understand, but didn't press further. They walked in silence from then on, not an awkward sort but more of a comfortable silence. It was nice, Mikan thought. She turned the corner of Arneys Cres before reaching a tall building of apartments. She turned around to face Natsume,

"Thank you." She mumbled, "This is where I live so…" Natsume nodded and muttered a 'You're welcome' back before retreating. Mikan felt a small annoyance at his impoliteness,_ Well. _She thought _Goodbye to you too. _She swiveled around to walk through the automatic doors and into the elevator, before pressing Level 6. She flounced out of the elevator when it reached her level and walked down to no.652, she grabbed her keys clumsily and opened the door.

_Home, Sweet Home. _She thought miserably as the turned the lights on to an empty apartment.

* * *

><p>"Mikan!" There was a thumping on the door "Open the bloody door!" Luna's voice echoed through the apartment as Mikan scoffed down her breakfast and grabbed her schoolbag.<p>

"I'm coming!" She replied running towards the door and opening it. "Let's go." She breathed.

Luna looked at her annoyed, "If you're going to get me up earlier so we can walk to school together, at _least _be on time." Mikan rolled her eyes

"Yeah, Yeah" She replied. "Where's Reo?" Reo was Luna's older brother, who normally walked to school with them.

"Oh, He took the lodgers and went off to school." She replied turning her heel to walk to the stairs, Luna believed that elevators were evil and cursed and eversince the day she turned 11 and got trapped in one for five hours, and vowed to ever take one again. Mikan followed suit.

"Lodgers?" She asked, confused. Luna flopped down the stairs, re-applying some lip gloss.

"Oh yeah," She yawned, "Forgot to tell you, My cuz' Ruka and his mate Natsume are staying till graduation. They got themselves kicked out of their old school so Auntie sent them here, they go to school with Reo now. I would of told you earlier but I only found out like, a few days ago. No one _ever _tells me whats going on in my family" She huffed.

Mikan eventually remembered the events on the train last night with Natsume and Ruka and decided against telling Luna about her encounter with them. "What about Natsume's family?" She asked as they past a flower shop.

"M.I.A." Luna replied, "They like, totally just _vanished _years ago. It's so crazy, Natsume stays with Ruka normally in their house."

"Oh." Mikan replied lamely, adjusting her tie. The Alice Academy uniform was quite a nice one, Their ties were blue and black striped over a white long sleeved blouse (short sleeved in Summer) Black skirt that was _meant _to reach knees, but ended normally somewhere between mid-thigh and knee. They were matched with stockings or knee-high socks and T-bar shoes, and their Blazers were a dark blue with the Alice crest embroider over the pocket. Mikan had a black schoolbag with a foxtail keyring and a small love heart that was drawn on with white-out ink. Mikan snuck a glance at Luna, She was clad in the same as Mikan but she had on the black jersey on instead of the blazer. Luna was indeed very pretty, She had short, blonde hair and bright blue eyes. Her mouth was small and pink and her bottom lip stuck out a little bit. She was tan and had a very fine complexion. Her ears were pierced and she had two diamond studs in one ear, and one diamond stud in the other.

"Hurry up, Slow poke. We're going to be late." Luna said, walking faster.

"'Kay!" Mikan smiled, "Race ya'" She yelled running off ahead

"Oi!" Luna yelled back, "Oh god." She muttered, now running herself. "Now i look like a _complete _loser."

Luna and Mikan had an unlikely friendship, Luna was very confident and loud whereas Mikan was sometimes very shy. They'd been friends since kindergarten, Mikan had been picked on by numerous nasty little boys who found pleasure in kicking her sandcastles over and telling her that her finger painting was bad. Luna had stepped in and yelled at the little boys so much that her parents had been called in to talk to the caregiver. It was a cute story where a newfound friendship had begun.

As they reached the school gates they parted for their subjects, Luna had Classical Studies whereas Mikan had a double period private dance lesson. The Dance rooms at Alice were being renovated for the past few weeks and the next few months she had to use the studios at . Mikan walked across the field and passed the reception to before entering Dobson Block, Walking down the corridors she looked at the note that read which room the dance studio would be today, D.24 she glanced at the door she just passed; _D.46. Just a bit more down _Mikan thought

She opened the door to the Dance studio and quickly got changed into her dance gear, A black singlet and tight mid calf sweats. Her hair was tied up in a tight bun and she had pulled on her ballet flats. Shortly after a tall man with long black hair slicked into a low ponytail walked in.

"Good Morning " Mikan said

"Good Morning Mikan." He replied shortly, "We'll get right into it, Shall we? The play is in a few months and I want you to be the best. We'll do Odette's solo today."

"Yes." She stood up and pointed her toes, poised her arms and waited for to start the tape.

The music started and as she heard a low string she bent her right arm downwards delicately and her left up before jumping at the sound of the higher strings. Her routine was one she had learnt off by heart, Mikan knew Odette's solo the best out of any other routine she had ever done. When she started ballet at four years old she was determined to be better than everyone else. She practiced more, tried harder and did better than all of the other little girls in her class. She had no friends in her ballet classes when she was younger as she knew they were only there because their mothers wanted to dress them up in pink tutus and make them look cute. They didn't have the same passion or motivation as Mikan. She soon moved onto private lessons four times a week for two hours. Now, at seventeen years she was doing 4 hours on a Tuesday, 2 hours on a Thursday and Monday and 8 hours on a Sunday. Today was Thursday.

Mr. Jinno had been her teacher since she was fourteen. He was strict and precise, exactly what she needed to be the best.

She finished the routine swiftly as the tune stopped, She looked up at Jinno expectantly.

"Again." He said shortly.

She did it again.

In fact, in those two hours she did the routine about 36 times.

The usual, really.

She stepped out of the dance studio after changing back into her uniform, it was break around now so the boys would be out of the classrooms. She hurried out of Dobson, If there was anything she hated it was definitely boys. Apart from Luna's brother, Reo and probably a few others, they all thought they were the be all and end all of everything. They thought that they were the alpha and that because they had money, brains, good looks and power they ran the whole country! They were cocky enough to make Mikan sick, She avoided St Michaels as much as she could. It would only get her temper flaring if she talked into an asshole here.

"Mikan!" She heard a masculine voice shout out her name and whipped her head to the direction of the sound.

"Ruka," She greeted as the blonde boy ran up to her, followed suit by Natsume. She nodded in his direction and he nodded back.

"What are you doing here?" Ruka asked,

Mikan patted her bag. "I have to use your dance studio, Ours is getting renovated." she explained, Ruka nodded.

"You dance?" Natsume asked, eyebrows raised. "What kind?"

"Ballet for thirteen years" Mikan replied proudly. "I'm working on a show at the moment, You guys should come see it when it's done."

"Sure" Ruka smiled, "Want to catch a bite to eat? We have study after break so theres a good hour to get some McD's or something."

"Okay," Mikan replied, "Do you mind if some friends? I haven't seen them all morning." Ruka nodded and they arranged to meet in Central Town, which was a five minute walk from campus. Mikan flipped open her phone to txt Hotaru and Luna to met her in the Central Town McDonalds.

Hotaru Imai was also one of Mikan's best friends. She was stunning, cropped black hair and violet eyes, Very tall and legs for Africa. She had thin lips and a thin nose, her eyes were big and stood out for their unusual colour. She had very defined cheek bones, her personality was cold and yet caring. She is thought to have no emotions, yet this can be proven wrong as Hotaru has a soft spot for Mikan's naivety. In Middle School while Luna was being a social butterfly, Mikan had been left by herself and approached by Hotaru. The rest is history, the two have a connection with each other and a true friendship can be evidently seen between them.

Mikan carried her tote with her, too lazy to go back to Alice Campus and put it back in her locker. After getting an ok from both Luna and Hotaru she walked down to Central Town, seeing Ruka and Natsume not too far ahead she ran to fall into pace with them.

"Hi" She grinned, falling into step next to Natsume.

"Hello again" Ruka replied, "Who'd you invite?"

"Luna and Hotaru."

Natsume pulled a face, "Luna? Really?"

Mikan slapped him lightly "She's my best friend! Don't be rude."

"She may be _your _best friend, Princess. " Natsume replied, "But she's certainly not mine, therefore I can be rude about her all I want."

Mikan rolled her eyes, "You are so…" She trailed off, struggling to find the right word. "Annoying." Natsume's eyebrows raised as they walked through the doors of McDonalds and Mikan pulled out her purse, Stepping infront of the boys in the queue.

"Ladies first." She stated, before giving her order to the cashier; A Garden salad with a bottle of water. Natsume gave her a look as if to say '_You come to McDonalds for something like __**that?**__'_

Mikan simply ignored him as she grabbed her meal and sat at a table with three chairs, and a sofa seat. She waved a hand as she noticed Hotaru and Luna walk in.

"Over here!" She called, a small grin surfacing.

"Mikan!" Luna called out, "How was practise?"

"It was same old, Jin-Jin is still super strict on me." Mikan pouted as Hotaru slid in next to her and Luna pulled up a chair opposite. Mikan gave Hotaru a quick hug and a hello before talking animatedly about the show in February, It was November now and even though there was still a few months until the opening, there was a lot to get done. Ruka and Natsume sat down next to Luna, who had not been expecting them here.

"Why are you two here?" She sneered, Mikan coughed awkwardly

"Sorry, Luna, I forgot to mention that they invited me here, We met the yesterday after I left Nika's party."

Luna's eyes narrowed. "Oh." She said.

"This is Hotaru," Mikan introduced, keen to change the subject. "She's one of my best friends!"

"Hi" Ruka smiled, Natsume nodded towards her and Hotaru simply raised her eyebrows.

"Hello." She replied, she stretched out a finger and pointed towards his fries 'You going to eat that?"

Ruka, surprised by her action shook his head and pushed the fries towards her, "All yours."

"Thanks." Hotaru replied, chewing on a chip. "What was your name again?"

"Ruka." He replied, "And this is Natsume. We're living with Luna currently because of… recent events."

"Freeloaders." Luna cut in. "They're freeloaders."

"Oh come on, Koizumi." Natsume said. "Don't be bitter just because - "

"I'm not bitter!" Luna cut off,

"Why would she be bitter?" Hotaru asked, taking a sip of Ruka's soda.

"Oh, Because Natsume -" Ruka started

"It doesn't matter!" Luna snapped

"You sure do like to cut people off,Lu" Mikan laughed, completely oblivious to the situation infront of her. She took a quick glance at the time, 10.53am. "Shit. I've got to go guys, I've got History at 11." She exclaimed closing her unfinished salad and putting it in her bag for later, "I'll see you all later!" She called out, running out the automatic doors, Leaving the four awkwardly to themselves.

Luna stood up, "I'm leaving too." She stated coldly before grabbing her bag and leaving, Natsume stretched before putting an arm on Ruka's shoulder

"See you at campus,mate"

"Ah." Ruka started, but gave up after seeing that Natsume was already half-way out the door. "I guess it's just you and me then, Hotaru."

"Imai" She corrected, "Do you really need that cheeseburger, Ruka?"

"Um…" Ruka trailed off, reluctant to give up his burger.

"Do you really _need _it?" Hotaru said slowly, making obvious glances at Ruka's stomach. Ruka rolled his eyes and pushed his burger towards her before crossing his arms.

"Have it." He mumbled, feeling suddenly insecure about his weight.

"Thanks!" Hotaru smiled.

* * *

><p>Oh gosh I had no idea how to end that, but I wanted to finish before the chapter got too long and too much happened and it was only the first chapter and blah. Review please,<p> 


	2. Chapter 2

"So." Mikan grinned, pressing her elbow into Hotaru's ribs."What happened after I left yesterday, Hm?" She asked, waggling her eyebrows. Hotaru gave her a withering look.

"I don't know whats worse," She started, "You thinking that something would happen between me and Ruka or the fact that you just _waggled _your eyebrows at me. Never do that again."

"What?" Mikan said, grinning wider. "Waggling my eyebrows or leaving you alone with Ruka?"

Hotaru whacked her upside her head, "Both, idiot. The only good thing I got out of the little exchange yesterday was a free meal."

"And seeing me." Mikan added, copying down the notes from the board.

"Sure."

The two girls were currently in Biology, they only had Bio,Chem and English Lit. together so the lessons were normally full with the two talking the whole time, teachers didn't seem to mind as long as the work was done.

"You're not interested in either of them, then?" Mikan pressed

"Not particularly, why?"

"Oh, I was just wondering. Ruka's quite handsome isn't he?"

"I suppose, Natsume seems quiet."

"Oh _Natsume_." Mikan scoffed, as if his name was vile in her mouth. "Ugh, Natsume. He's just so…ugh."

Hotaru raised her eyebrows and Mikan continued, "It's like, one minute he's like 'I am senor jerk and i don't care about anyone else apart from me' and then he's all 'easy-to-get-along-with-and-fun-Natsume' It's like permanent PMS with him"

"You act like you've known him for years." Hotaru replied dryly, her eyes not leaving the whiteboard.

Immediately, Mikan blushed. "I don't." She said hurriedly, "It's just that's what he _seems _like. You know, for the past two days its been hot 'n' cold with him."

"Uh-huh." Hotaru replied, unconvinced. "Whatever, Mikan. He _seems _like bad news to me, so i'd stay away if I were you."

"I wouldn't touch him with a ten foot pole, Hotaru. Believe me, I have absolutely _no _desire to see Natsume at all!'

* * *

><p>"So." Ruka started.<p>

Natsume glanced at him, "So?"

"So…" Ruka trailed off.

They were in History. Ruka was on his left and he was seated next to the window, even though History was Natsume's favorite subject he was having trouble concentrating on it.

"Mikan, huh." Ruka said, digging his elbow into Natsume's ribs. "Thoughts on her?"

"Stupid." He replied bluntly. Ruka raised an eyebrow.

"I think she's pretty." He stated airily, Natsume said nothing. In all honesty he hadn't actually stopped thinking about her since he walked her home from the tube, It wasn't like he was 'stunned by her beauty' or anything cliche like that. She wasn't that stunning to him, She was very pretty, but not gorgeous. Although Natsume had to admit she had nice hair, it was long and wavy and smelt like green apples, But there wasn't anything _special _about her looks. Not really, anyway. She was quite small, but it was sort of cute. He didn't really know what he thought of her, He _thought _that he thought she was a rich ponce, who was too dense for her own good. But he wanted to see more of her, he didn't exactly know _why_. He just did.

"But…She's friends with" Natsume paused, "Luna."

Ruka shivered at the name, "Yeah. Cousin from hell, huh?" Natsume nodded in reply,

"Do you wanna go out tonight then, hit a bar or something?" Ruka asked, "Avoid the she-devil?"

"Yes." Natsume groaned, "Dinner last night was hell."

"She's still sore that you rejected her, poor girl."

"It's not my fault I don't feel the same as she feels for me, But really, she needs to move on."

"Oh you are such a heartbreaker, Natsume." Ruka swooned mockingly,

Natsume grinned at him, "Give over."

* * *

><p>"Mikan!" Luna called, "Let's go home together." She was standing at the door of Mikan's sixth period class; Math.<p>

"I can't." Mikan whined, "I have my job today."

Luna's brow furrowed, "Doesn't that start at like, seven?"

"Yeah, but i was going to go into Central and grab a bite, Plus i have to help Reo set up around five so…"

"Allright, whatever." Luna said, "I'll just go home with Anna or something, have fun at work" she waved a hand airily before walking out.

Mikan grabbed her bag and slung it over one shoulder, before setting off to Central Town. 'Reo' was her cousin, who owned a club in town. She helped out (despite being underage) in the bar on Fridays and some Saturdays.

She made her way to the bakery, the smell of freshly made bread roaming the air. She pushed open the door with a small 'chime' as the bell rung, A plump lady came out from behind the bench with an outstretched smile on her face.

"Mikan!" She chorused, walking around to give the girl a hug, "How are you, love? I haven't seen you in yonks!"

"Mrs. Hughes," Mikan addressed, a warm smile surfacing. "I'm good, thank you. And you?"

"Oh no need to be polite, Mikan." Mrs Hughes hushed, "I've known you for years! You can call me Carol."

"I prefer Mrs Hughes," Mikan replied, "It's nice."

"Whatever's good with you!" Mrs Hughes replied, walking round to the counter. "What will it be today then?"

"A plain bagel and an apple juice, please."

Mrs Hughes frowned, "You really need to eat more, Mikan. You're practically wasting away!" Mikan laughed.

"Oh all right then, throw a chocolate muffin in there too."

"Thats my girl." Mrs Hughes grinned, grabbing a pair of tongs and fetching the items from a glass cabinet displayed to the customers. She promptly put the items in a brown paper bag, rolling the top and passing it to Mikan. Mikan handed over the money and bid her farewell.

She made her way to Reo's club, munching on her bagel. She didn't really feel like eating the muffin and decided to give it to Reo. Reo was tall, with blazing red hair and brown eyes. At 27 years old he was very successful, his club 'Curious and Curiouser' was well-known and always popular. He was married to Midori Yamamoto, who was very goregous to say the least. They'd only been married for two, maybe three years now. She was 26 and had a pixie-like hair cut, which was the darkest of browns. Her cheekbones were very well defined, and her lips were full and plump. She had green eyes that we're very wide and pretty. She wasn't the friendliest of sorts, or perhaps it wasn't that she wasn't friendly, but more so that she had trust issues. She didn't know how to approach people very well, her social skills were all over the place. Midori and Mikan were pretty good friends, but it took time to build the friendship between the two.

She crossed the backstreet that lead her to stairs going underground, she tredded carefully down the stairs, as the steps were still wet from the crap weather.

She took off her coat and pushed open the door that led to a wooden floor and apart from two figures by the bar, the place was utterly empty.

"Mikan!" One of the figures boomed,

"Hi, Reo." Mikan smiled, before looking past him and nodding at Midori, "Hey, Midori."

"Hello." She replied, a small smile surfacing.

"Well." Reo puffed, "Time to get ready, we're opening early tonight, so there's a lot to do! Go on, get changed." Mikan raised her brow but continued to the staff bathroom anyway.

There was no real _uniform _for the club. But the bar attendants wore more or less the same thing. Mikan pulled on a pair of black, skinny jeans and a simple black corset. They were Midori's but since Mikan hadn't anything black in her wardrobe that would fit her place as bar attendant, she had been given this to wear for her shifts. Mikan was a B-cup, so there wasn't a large amount of cleavage to show, but the corset certainly left little to the imagination. She wriggled uncomfortably before leaving her bag in the locker. She pulled out her ponytail and ran her hand through her hair. Studying her refection, she put on a swipe of mascara and eyeliner and bit her lip.

"Mikan!" Reo thumped on the door. "Are you almost ready? We need to set up, people will be here in a bit!"

"I'll be right out!" Mikan replied, stuffing her make up in her bag and opening the door. "Okay, what do you need me to do?"

For the next hour or so, Mikan helped set up. She tested the lights, music, everything. Soon people were flooding in and the speakers were pumping with Innocence by Nero, sweaty bodies were dancing together and Mikan was behind the bar, serving people who had to scream their drink order over the loud music.

Mikan had just finished pouring a Long Island when she got the fright of her life.

"Mikan?"

Her head shot up, and her eyes locked with red ones. "Natsume?" She asked, hardly believing her eyes. Hardly _anyone _she knew came here. Natsume looked just over 18 so he would of gotten in anyway.

"Thats me, "He replied distractedly, he gave her a long look up and down. "You look…" He paused and gave a smirk, "Good."

"Pervert." She replied, "Here by yourself, then?"

"Nah." He jabbed a thumb towards the crowd, "Ruka's in there somewhere, dancing away."

"Of course." Mikan said, "So, What'll be?"

"Surprise me." Natsume said, leaning on the bench after perching himself on a stool. "Aren't you underage, Princess?"

"My cousin owns the club." She replied bluntly, she had no idea what she was making him. She was mixing random beverages together, hoping it would taste okay.

"Here." She said, placing the glass on the table, Natsume just looked at it.

"What is it?" He asked, an eyebrow raised.

"Try it, and find out." She replied.

He took a long sip and pulled a face, "It's a bit…Er" Natsume paused, "Strong."

"Oh?" Mikan looked smug and took the glass away, "I would of thought that a big, strong man like yourself, might have been able to handle this. Oh well, I guess i was wrong."

"Hey now." Natsume said, "Give it back here, Princess. I said it was _strong _not that I couldn't handle it."

"Can you?" She asked, putting the drink back on the bench.

"Yes." He said, before taking the drink and draining it.

"Don't do that, you imbecile. You'll be sick."

"Ugh." Natsume groaned, "Just get me a beer this time."

"Yeah, Yeah."

Natsume had had a few more beers as time went on, and Mikan had had a few too. Natsume was _well _past drunk, he was hammered.

"dance wiv meee." He groaned, "Pleeeeeease."

"I have to work." Mikan giggled, A wasted Natsume reminded her much of a spoilt kid.

"Screw work." Natsume grumbled, reaching across the bar to touch her, "I want youuuu."

"You." Mikan declared, "Are pissed, and any judgments or statements you make now will not be believed."

"I want you to dance with me!" He yelled, reaching towards her again. Mikan just laughed.

Reo approached Mikan from behind the bar, "Oh, Dance with the sod," He said, "I'll man the fort."

Mikan looked taken aback, "Are you sure-?"

"Mikaaaaaaaaaaaan." Natsume moaned, Mikan rolled her eyes.

"Allright, " She said, sitting up on the bench and over the otherside. "One dance."

The Flux Pavillion remix of Gold Dust was pumping through the speakers at full blast, Mikan threw her head back, getting lost in the crowd. She lovedthis song.

Natsume's hands found their way to her waist as he pulled her in, Automatically she threw her arms loosely around his neck, moving her upper torso to the beat and drops. Lights were flashing different colours and quickly. Mikan felt hypnotized, It'd been too long since she'd danced like this.

People were pushed up against her and the atmosphere was hot and sticky. The gap between her and Natsume was non-existent. She had closed her eyes and moved her hips in motion. Her head was swaying and her hair with it, She felt Natsume's breath on her ear and shivered.

"Mikan." He said as the song faded into I can't stop by Flux

Her eyes snapped open and realized just _how _close he was. She took a deep breath in, the way he said her name had given her goosebumps.

Maybe it was the exhilaration of dancing differently than how she was used to, but her heart was slamming against her ribcage.

His eyes were beautiful. They truly looked like rubies, she felt herself melting into his gaze. They had locked eyes for a while now. Mikan felt drunk and giddy, she leant forward and clumsily kissed Natsume, who was happy to comply with the situation. Their mouths followed eachothers actions, Mikans hands tightened around Natsume's neck and ran themselves through his hair, Which he seemed to like. He nibbled on her bottom lip, and she let out a barley audible moan. His lips trailed her jaw and up to her ear, she giggled lightly at the action and felt him smile against her lobe.

"Mikan" He kept whispering.

'God, It sounds so good when he says it.' She thought running her hands through his hair again.

"I can't stop." The voice from the music repeated. Mikan definitely felt out of it, she felt drunk on Natsume's lips. Scratch that, she just felt drunk.

Drunk and happy.

Perhaps it just took a while for those beers to take effect, she pondered. But her thoughts were quickly wiped as Natsume leaned in to kiss her again. They repeated the dance again, lips moving with each other, hands exploring each other's bodies. It was great. He started kissing her neck, leaving numerous hickeys.

"Natsume!" A voice screamed, Natsume lifted his head with a groan and Mikan showed a look of disdain and disappointment that he had stopped, they both turned to the figure who had spoken.

"Ruka." Natsume greeted calmly, well, as calmly as you could in a club.

Ruka hesitated before screaming again, "We need to get back! The Koizumi's are _pissed._"

"Great." Natsume groaned inwardly, he looked at Mikan. "See you later."

"Er…" Mikan stood there numbly, watching Natsume and Ruka retreat up the stairs. She had regained her senses as soon as Natsume left her side. She felt weird and confused.

What on earth had she just gotten herself into


	3. Chapter 3

"Thats your big emergency?" Hotaru asked sternly over the phone.

"It's a big problem!" Mikan said, almost yelling into the phone.

"You kissed a guy - who was drunk,'' Hotaru stated.

"I _thew _myself at him, Hotaru! I am a _slut _and I need to repent on my promiscuousness!"

"You're not even religious." Hotaru scoffed

Mikan bit her lip, she hadn't mentioned the guy that she kissed was Natsume, mainly because a) Hotaru clearly told her to keep her distance from him, and lord knows what she'd do if she found out that not hours later Mikan did the exact _opposite _of 'keeping her distance' and b) She was hoping that Natsume had been so drunk last night that he wouldn't remember anything from their little rendevouz on the dancefloor and she can move on with life as per usual.

"I just feel…dirty."

"Then go on one of those cleansing diets you like so much, " Hotaru replied bluntly, "Anyway, It's Saturday; Your free day, what are you up to?"

Mikan let out a yawn and wondered across her apartment to the fridge, "I was actually just going to stay in my pajamas and watch _Love,Actually _and _Bridget Jones' Diary_." She said, pulling out the orange juice and grabbing an empty glass before bumping the fridge door close with her hip. "Why?"

"Only wondering," Hotaru mused, "Nogi asked us to go into Central Town with him and a few of his mates today."

"His mates being…?"

"Natsume most likely, not sure of the others."

Mikan frowned, "What happened to 'keeping a distance' from Natsume?"

"If it can't be helped." Hotaru replied boringly. "So what'll it be, Renee Zellweger or Central Town?"

Mikan bit her lip, Renee Zellweger could wait and any chance to hang out with Hotaru (a.k.a. Miss Too Busy To Do Anything Ever) was a chance that should be taken, but she had also made up her mind to keep a distance from Natsume.

"Well?" Hotaru pressed.

Mikan hesitated, "I'll be at yours in twenty." She replied before hanging up the phone. She would just have to avoid Natsume, it wouldn't be that hard…Would it? Mikan chewed on her bottom lip, her mind full of doubt. She pushed the thought aside and looked through her closet for something to wear. It was quite cold outside so she decided on her skinny jeans and a tight black t-shirt before grabbing a navy blue coat and pulling on a pair of Dr. Martens. She quickly brushed her hair and grabbed her purse before heading to Hotaru's.

* * *

><p>"You said twenty minutes." Hotaru stated, her arms crossed and her thin body leaning on the door frame.<p>

Mikan frowned, "The bus was late! I can't control the traffic, Hotaru."

"Whatever." She replied dryly, "Let's go." She closed the door behind her and walked ahead, Central Town was about fifteen minutes by foot from Hotaru's.

Mikan walked briskly to fall into step with the girl, "Where are we meeting them?" She asked curiously, fiddling with her coat belt.

"_Starbucks_" Hotaru replied, "Normally I would have rejected the offer, Plus I only just met him, but he said that Natsume really wanted to see you." Mikan froze, _Shit. _

"And so." Hotaru continued, "I got curious as to _why _Natsume Hyuuga would want to see you. I mean, you've only met once or twice haven't you?" Mikan swallowed, "Nogi didn't end up telling me why, though. But I'm not stupid, I put the dots together from the phone call from earlier and _voila, _" She stopped and turned to face Mikan, violet eyes cold and cynical. "You made out with Natsume Hyuuga, even though we had specifically said that he was bad news."

"Hotaru, I -"

"And furthermore, you didn't even tell me that you made out with Natsume Hyuuga."

"I did to! I said that I kissed a guy"

Hotaru snorted. "Oh, yeah. But you didn't say that that 'guy' was Natsume Hyuuga."

"Stop calling him 'Natsume Hyuuga'! You make him sound more important than he is."

Hotaru began walking again, "So?"

"So…?"

"Was he a good kisser?"

Mikan blushed immediately, She hesitated before murmuring a 'Yeah'

Violet eyes flickered towards her and furrowed her brows.

"I promise, Hotaru - No, I _pinky swear _that I will stay as far away as possible from Natsume! I don't even like the guy." Mikan exclaimed.

"Oh no," Hotaru said darkly, as they turned the corner of Starbucks. "You got yourself into this, Now we're going to have to see how it ends."

Mikan pulled an exasperated face before walking into the said cafe and ordering a Hot Chocolate.

"Hotaru." Mikan started, "I really don't want to see how it ends, it was silly last night. He was wasted, I was…" she trailed off. "Taken off in the moment, I guess."

"Too bad, It's about time you learnt what a boy was anyway."

Before Mikan could retaliate a clear voice called them

A mop of blonde hair appeared from a sofa around the corner. "I thought I heard you two." Ruka grinned, coming up to meet the girls. Mikan flushed, she could die of mortification of Ruka or Natsume had heard their conversation. "Come on, meet the guys!"

Seeing no possible way out of this, Mikan grabbed her hot chocolate and followed Ruka to a secluded area with a few couches and a small brown table. Sitting there was a boy with sandy brown hair and bright brown eyes, a boy with shaved hair and a possible sulk or sneer plastered on his face and of course - Natsume Hyuuga. Scarlet eyes found hers and his mouth pulled into a slow grin.

"Hi, Mikan." He crooned huskily,

_Fuck, Fuck and double fuck, _Mikan thought. _He hasn't forgotten. _"Hello." She replied coldly.

Ruka laughed nervously before introducing the two boys, The sandy haired one was Koko and Sir Sulk-a-lot was called Mochiage.

"Can't I just call you Mochu?" Mikan asked for the billionth time. The group had gotten along well and it wasn't hard for Mikan to ignore Natsume, his eyes seemed to follow her but he never really spoke.

"No." Mochiage replied. "How would you like it if I called you something silly like Meeky?"

Mikan blinked and frowned, sipping her second hot chocolate. "I wouldn't mind."

"Would so."

"I'll call you Mochu anyway."

"Meeky it is," Mochu replied sternly, "Or Meeks, Whatever."

"You are so impossible!" Mikan exclaimed. Koko laughed, Mikan liked his laugh; it was a nice, hearty laugh that made you want to laugh along with him.

Hotaru rolled her eyes, She had been muttering to Ruka the whole time who looked uncomfortable and oddly happy at the same time.

Mikan yawned and stretched, "Let's not just stay here, I vote for arcade then a movie."

Koko stood up. "I second that act!"

Mikan grinned and pulled herself up, "Well?"

Mochu grabbed his phone from off the table and stuffed it in his jeans. "Sure, Whatever."

Ruka smiled, "I'm in."

Without waiting for Hotaru and Natsume's response, Mikan was half way out the door with Koko and Mochu, her and Koko were loud and laughing, while Mochu tried to keep up his 'Cool' exterior.

"I am _killing _you." Mikan laughed, She was versing Ruka on Guitar Hero and there was a definite difference between scores.

"Shut up." Ruka muttered, "I haven't played this since I was like, fourteen."

"Aw." Mikan mockingly cooed, "Is the loser feeling loser-y?"

"That doesn't even make sense!" Ruka snapped.

"Down boy!" Mikan laughed even more, finishing the game on a long note. She shot a grin at Ruka "Maybe next time, bud."

She stepped down and let out a sigh and a stretch, She scanned the arcade for something else to play. Koko and Mochu were playing some sort of lame zombie shooting game, Hotaru was playing wack-a-mole (Which in Mikan's opinion, was really cute.) and Ruka was recovering from defeat. Natsume was brooding in a corner somewhere, she guessed. Something at the back of the arcade caught her eye. Her orbs widened and she made a bee line towards the said object.

"DDR." She breathed, It was her all time _favorite _game to play. She fished around for her game card in her pocket and looked behind her to see if Ruka was keen for another round of ass whooping. Instead she found Natsume, right behind her. Mikan almost screamed.

"What do you think you're _doing_?" She screeched. "You almost gave me a bloody heart attack."

Natsume ignored her outburst. "Wanna play?" He asked, tilting his head towards the Dance Dance Revolution Machine.

Mikan looked him up and down, "Are you any good?"

"You kidding?" Natsume scoffed, "I'm the best."

Mikan rolled her eyes at his cockiness, "Whatever. If you're so good, you'd be up for a little competition, hm?"

"Is the lady challenging thee to a dance off?" Natsume mused.

"She is."

"Want to make it more interesting?"

"How so?"

"A bet."

"That is interesting." Mikan replied. She was pretty confident in her skills, and Natsume didn't pose as much as a threat for dancing. "You're on." She concluded.

"Awesome, What are your terms?"

"If I win…" She hesitated, "You have to Yell three times, "I'm cwaaazy. Cwazy 'cause I'm Wooonwy!" like Elmer Fudd."

Natsume raised his eyebrow. "God, You're weird as shit."

Mikan brushed his comment away, "What about you? What's your part of the bet?"

Natsume shrugged, "I'll decide once I've won."

"**If **you win." Mikan corrected, "I'm dangerously good at this game."

"whatever." Natsume replied, choosing a difficult level and song. "Prepare to be annihilated." He said as the screech of a messy and fast electro-pop song started.

* * *

><p>Mikan couldn't believe it. She just <em>couldn't. <em>No one had ever beaten her at DDR, it was just unheard of! She shot a glare to a smirking crimson eyed boy. The boy ran his hand through his hair and sighed.

"Are you over it yet?"

"No." She hissed in reply. "How did you cheat, Tell me!"

"I didn't." Natsume replied, boringly.

"Then how!" Mikan exclaimed, they were sitting on the leather seat to the side of the arcade, watching Hotaru and Koko play a car racing game. Natsume shrugged.

Mikan sighed again, "So what's your dare, what do you want, Hot shot?"

Natsume looked at her, a mischievous look in his dark red eyes. He leaned closer to her and let out a slow smile, his teeth showing and his lips widening rather nicely. Mikan tried to ignore the hammering in her chest but found it difficult at the rate it was thumping.

"What do I want?" He repeated, amused.

"Y-Yeah." Mikan stuttered, a small blush creeping on her cheeks.

"What I want…" Natsume said slowly. "A date with you."

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry for short chapter and long update ): School has been taking over and blah. I hope to update more frequently soon, I just need to get on top of a few assignments and homework and stuff. <strong>


	4. Chapter 4

"Mikan!" Jinno called strictly to the retreating girl. "If you're that crap next time, we'd kindly give your part to some othermore _deserving_ girl."

_Deserving?_ Mikan scoffed in her mind, _I spend half my time dedicated to you and your stupid routines, jerk wad._

"Yes, Jinno." Mikan droned before leaving the studio. Jesus, that man was a bore. Mikan had to admit she had been rather crap during the eight hour rehearsal, but she couldn't help that her mind was elsewhere.

Where exactly was her mind, you ask?

It was where every teenage girl's mind is when they get asked out on a date.

What to wear?

She didn't even know what they were doing for their date, she was half tempted to ring up Natsume and ask him but she didn't want to seem like she was trying to impress him, plus he had been pretty keen on keeping the whereabouts of their date a secret, or as he put it 'a surprise.' It was tonight; a Sunday, another thing Mikan found odd but didn't seem to question. But as she pondered over it she began to wonder, Why the heck would you choose a Sunday? It's basically a school night and a date could have waited until next weekend. She had come to the conclusion that Natsume Hyuuga was an odd man.

Mikan began walking to her apartment block, mentally picking out an outfit. She contemplated jeans and a nice t-shirt or maybe a jumper over a skirt…

Nope, She had no idea what to wear. She was, in short - In need of a certain Luna Koizumi

"What do you need?" Luna's voice echoed through the phone.

"Straight to the point, I see." Mikan replied, opening the door to her apartment.

"Always am." Luna replied proudly, "But really, What do you need?"

"Er…" Mikan hesitated, "I have a date tonight and -"

"Wait, what?" Luna asked, shocked. "You have a what?"

"A date."

"I didn't even know you knew the meaning of the word!"

"Yeah, Well." Mikan replied, rather ticked off. "I don't know what to wear, and I um… need your help."

"Of course you do!" Luna squealed, "I didn't think this day would ever come! Well first things first, What are you doing?"

"Thats the catch, I have no clue. It's a 'surprise.'"

"Romantic." Luna drawled,

"Mmhmm." Mikan rolled her eyes inwardly, Luna was never one for cliche romance.

"Well, then." Luna sighed, "We'll have to go with a safe option, You know that dress you wore at Nonoko's Christmas party last year?"

"The velvet one?"

"Yep, I'd go for that, plus those shoes I lent you last week - Not the ones you wore to Nika's the other ones you _still _haven't given back yet."

"Oh. I'll return them tomorrow, Thanks Luna."

"So…Who's the lucky guy?"

Mikan swallowed, she wasn't stupid. She could see Luna's distain for Natsume (And likewise for Natsume.) but It wasn't as if she could lie to her… "Oh, um. I have to go, Luna! Talk to you tomorrow."

"Hey, Wait -."

Mikan quickly hung up and sighed, she would deal with telling Luna at a later date. She walked to her closet and laid the deep purple, velvet dress. It was her mother's, she had stolen it from her closet before she left. She didn't make a habit of wearing it, but it was rather nice and floaty, it was long sleeved and ended mid thigh. (A/N this is the type of dress im thinking of .tumblr .com/tumblrlgq5874I8U1qzxoazo1_ take out the space between tumblr and .com though)

Mikan glanced at her watch, there was enough time for a bath. She was feeling gross from practice all day and Natsume was picking her up in two hours, plenty of time to get ready. She went to the pearl tiled bathroom to run a bubble bath, she put a vanilla scent in with a few dissolving aromatherapy crystals before peeling off her oversized singlet and bike shorts and sinking into the warm, relaxing water.

_Ahhh_, Mikan thought, _Baths are so lovely,_ She closed her eyes pleasantly and sunk further into the bubbles.

* * *

><p>"Yo!"<p>

Mikan's eyes snapped open. _Shit. _She had fallen asleep in the bathtub, and it sounded like Natsume was here.

"Coming!" She yelled back, clumsily standing up and getting out of the tub before grabbing a towel and muttering a stringful of curses.

She dashed to the door and wrapped the towel around herself tightly. She swung the door open and saw Natsume clad in jeans, a black t-shirt and a jacket. His eyebrows raised slowly.

"Not exactly how I imagined our first date, but still good." He grinned devilishly.

Mikan's eyes narrowed and she held one hand on her towel and used the other to point to the living room. "Shut up." She hissed icily, "And wait there."

"Killjoy." Natsume muttered before walking past her and sitting down on the couch. "Don't be too long."

"I'll be how ever long I like, thanks." Mikan replied cattily before traipsing off to her room.

She came out not long after, dressed in the velvet dress and her hair out with slight curls at the end. She had her usual make up on - A swipe of mascara and light colored lipstick. The heels she had borrowed from Luna gave her the extra height, yet she was still only up to Natsume's shoulders.

"I'm ready."

Natsume stood up and brushed his hands on his jeans, "I can tell." He remarked dryly. "Let's go then."

Mikan grabbed her bag and followed him to the door suit, she turned off the lights and sighed inwardly. Tonight would be a long night.

* * *

><p>"You're kidding me."<p>

Natsume looked at her quizzically, "What?"

"We're going _Ice skating?" _Mikan hissed.

"Yeah." Natsumes browed furrowed, "What of it?"

"What of it?" Mikan echoed. "Um, I can't ice-skate for shit, mister!"

Natsume let out a sly smirk,"Don't worry, I can hold your hand if you want."

Before Mikan could retort, Natsume grabbed her hand and pulled her into the rink, They ordered their skates and Mikan had to borrow some rental socks, which she turned her nose up to.

"I don't understand what it is about fashion statements that make girls avoid rental socks." Natsume stated, as they sat on the bench and tied up their skates.

"It's not a fashion statement, It's a hygiene issue!"

"They wash the socks after use." Natsume replied boringly.

"Thats what they _tell you_, there is no evidence to support that statement!"

"Yeah, Yeah. Are you ready yet?"

Mikan bit her lip as her stomach dropped. She was absolutely crap at ice-skating, she was nervous about embarrassing herself in front of Natsume.

"Yep." She lied, stepping onto the rink and gripping onto the railing. Natsume grinned and outstretched a hand, "How does a ballerina not know how to skate?"

"They're two completely different things!" Mikan exclaimed. Almost immediately after releasing her grip on the railing she fell over and landed on her butt. She winced and looked up at Natsume, expecting him to have that annoying smirk plastered on his face or even worse; laughing at her. But the expected expression was replaced by a look of concern, He knelt down and offered his hand again.

"You okay?" He asked, worry apparent in his tone.

"I'm fine." Mikan mumbled, a small blush creeping onto her cheeks, her heart thumped a little bit as she took his hand and he pulled her up with him.

The evening followed with Natsume teaching Mikan how to skate, her many failures and clinging onto his jacket. She would be lying if she said she wasn't enjoying herself, Natsume wasn't very talkative, but when he did speak up it normally ended up in Mikan getting angry or flustered. Every now and again he would crack a sarcastic joke, his dry humor made her laugh a little bit but she wouldn't let him on to how much she was growing on him. He was good looking and boy, did he know it. He really didn't need any more of an ego.

He walked her back to her apartment, his dry comments making her giggle and retort with something equally as witty. They reached her door and she looked up at him grinning, He shifted his feet awkwardly.

"Well…" Natsume trailed off, "I guess I'll be seeing you, then." He nodded before retreating from her.

"Wait!" Mikan called, grabbing onto his jacket, "You haven't eaten, right? Come in, Let's make pizza or something!"

Natsume hesitated, he should be getting back to the Koizumi's around now. Ruka must be ready to shoot himself soon. But he was having so much fun with this girl, Everytime she had laughed, fallen over or bit her lip tonight he had felt his chest tighten and the urge to kiss her higher. There was definite chemistry, all right. He turned and smiled slowly

"All right then, If you would hate to be separated from me _that _much."

"Shut up, Jerk." Mikan laughed, pulling her keys out to open the door. "I've got all the ingredients we need, And don't think you'll get away with not helping me. You're going to help make the best pizza you've ever tasted."

"I'm sure." He replied, kicking off his shoes and taking off his jacket. He draped it on the sofa and made his way to the kitchen.

"What's first?" He asked.

"The dough." Mikan replied, bringing a recipe book out of a cabinet. "Let's begin shall we?"

She pulled out a large silver bowl, and Natsume stood next to the pantry as Mikan read out the ingredients and he grabbed them. He managed to accidentally drop half a bag of flour on the floor, He repeatedly apologized while trying to clean it up. Mikan laughed and told him it was fine, but he still didn't stop apologizing. She ended up grabbing a fist full of flour and throwing it at him. Mikan threw her head back and laughed at the surprised look on the boys face. Natsume liked Mikan's laugh, It was tinkly and made him smile. Although right now it was not the time for smiling, He grabbed the pan he had brushed all the flour from the floor into and poured it onto her head. Her laughing stopped abruptly as she stormed over to the fridge and grabbed an egg, before reaching upwards and cracking it open right on top of Natsume's raven head. He ran a hand through his hair and pulled a look of disgust as he saw the sticky goop in his hand. He reached over and drew a line with his yolk-ed finger on Mikan's forehead. She gasped and immediately wiped her face, running her mascara.

Natsume burst out laughing, Her hair had bits of flour in it and her mascara was smudged all over her face. "You look ridiculous!" He exclaimed.

Mikan glared at him before grabbing a flannel and wetting it. "I hate you." She said as she washed her face and ran a hand through her sticky hair. Natsume stopped laughing and leaned closer to her.

"You didn't on Friday." He grinned, Mikan paled immediately.

"Yeah, W-well." She stuttered, her cheeks began to burn red and she tried to avert her eyes from his piercing ones. "I was drunk."

"Were you _really_?" Natsume teased, leaning closer to the beetroot girl. Mikan didn't reply, She just stared at him. He was gorgeous. Her eyes trailed from his well defined cheeks, to his nose, to his forehead, to his eyes, which managed to hitch her breath everytime, to his lips. His lips looked so soft, yet masculine. She wondered what they felt like, what they tasted like. Before she knew it she had cupped his chin with her fingertips and brought him downwards to plant a small kiss on him. To say he was surprised would be an understatement, his eyes watched hers flutter close and move her lips against his. He smiled into her lips as he noticed a small print of flour on her nose. It was an innocent kiss, and her lips were light and feathery against his. As soon as he realized what was happening he grabbed her by the waist and lifted her on the kitchen bench so he wouldn't have to bend awkwardly. He pulled away for a moment and then kissed her again, roughly and more passionate this time. She responded accordingly, and grabbed tuffs of his hair, pulling him closer. One of his arms found its way to the small of her back, pressing her against him more. He began kissing her jaw and running fingers through her hair, her lovely, lovely hair. He was intoxicated, he wanted more of her. More of her smell, More of her laughs, More of her body, More of her kisses. She was creating circles with her fingertips on his back and her heart was practically slamming against her ribcage in excitement. Then almost immediately she felt as if she had been slapped, Her eyes widened as she pushed him off her. She wiped her lips and looked at him, her hair was a mess and hickeys were all up and down her neck. Natsume looked at her questioningly

"What?" He asked, "I thought that -"

"I'm sorry." Mikan interrupted shakily, "I'm sorry, but you have to go." She bit her lip and grabbed his jacket before giving it to him. "I'm sorry." She repeated, averting his eyes "I shouldn't have - It was a mistake, It won't happen again. I'm sorry."

Natsume felt his heart drop to the pit of his stomach, He immediately turned sour. "Fine." He snarled, grabbing his jacket from her hand. "I'll see you around, Mikan." He said acidly, halfway out the door.

* * *

><p><strong>ANOTHER SHORT CHAPTER GOOD LORD I'M SORRY ):<strong>

**please do review, I've gotten a lot of lovely reviews from you guys so far and I really appreciate it. Thank you 3**


	5. Chapter 5

"Maybe you're a bad kisser." Ruka offered

Natsume snorted, "As if, I could snog you right now and the chances are you'd like it."

Ruka wrinkled up his nose, "No thanks. I'll take your word for it, bud.

"Maybe she's…" Mochu trailed off, "Frigid?"

"Nah." Koko shook his head, "She didn't seem like a frigid kind of girl to me."

Natsume immediately glowered at Koko, "How would _you _know?"

Koko let out a nervous laugh, "No reason, just a feeling"

Ruka stretched and let out a yawn, "Why do you even care though? So what if a girl didn't kiss you back, You and I both know you could have any other girl you want."

Natsume knew this was true, He _could _have any girl we wanted. Originally, Mikan was just there to kill time until Graduation, to have a little fun before he went to University. He didn't know why, but he felt a strange attachment to her. Perhaps he was just lusting after her. Why though? He'd been with girls before that we're prettier than her, and girls who could kiss better. It might be because she was level headed and could hold a conversation. Or maybe it was the friendly, naive air she had to her. The fact that she was small and innocent made him want to be protective of her, and want her to be reliant on him.

Natsume quickly shook his thoughts away, _I'm becoming a total pansy_ He thought to himself. He would just avoid her until this annoying fluttering in the pit of his stomach went away, he didn't have the time to be hung up on a girl anyway.

Natsume ran a hand through his hair and shook his head lazily, "Whatever, I don't care. It's just a bit weird to me."

"Right." Ruka drawled, "I saw Mikan this morning, and she looked fine. She seemed a bit distracted but nothing out of the ordinary. "

"Yeah? Well she _seems _like effort." Natsume responded. "And a lot of it, might I mention."

"And?" Ruka pressed.

"I really can't be bothered with things that require major doses of effort, You should know that by now."

"I do, but I thought Mikan might be good for you."

"It's a good thing you don't make my decisions, then." Natsume stood up from his desk. Him and his friends had stayed behind after school to do some class duties, and ended up discussing the 'Mikan-Mishap' (As Koko liked to call it.) "I'm calling it a day, I'll see you guys later. Ruka; let's go."

"Back to hell." Ruka mumbled throwing his bag over a shoulder. He nodded towards the others before following a retreating Natsume.

"So." Ruka said, when they were clearly out of earshot. "What's the _real _reason you care so much about this Mikan thing?"

"I don't." Natsume replied coldly, "I really don't, forget I mentioned it."

Ruka frowned, but let the topic drop anyway. "Whatever, Natsume." He muttered.

They were about to reach the bus stop when Natsume stopped, "I'm going on a walk for a bit,Tell the Koizumis I'll be back before dinner."

Ruka raised an eyebrow, but didn't question him. "Yeah, okay."

The boy stalked off, hands shoved in his blazer pockets.

_What an idiot, _He thought to himself, _If you're gonna kiss someone, Don't suddenly reject them in the middle of it._

He looked at himself in the reflection of a puddle by the curb, His almost black hair had been tousled in the usual way. His dark red eyes standing out, as usual. His mouth pulled into a stern line, the school bag loosely hung off his left shoulder. It wasn't like he wasn't visually appealing, Natsume smirked slightly at this. He had been told by numerous people of his good looks.

The smirk slowly turned into a frown as he began walking towards Central Town, He couldn't pinpoint any flaws within himself. Why _wouldn't _Mikan want to kiss him?

Everyone wanted to kiss him.

Didn't they?

His brow creased even further. A group of four or five school girls walked out of a shop, giggling and chatting away, their high pitched squeals frustrating Natsume. He was about to bark at them to shut-up when he realized their blushing faces and coy glances at him, immediately his temper subsided and he felt a proud smirk grow on his face. Nope, everyone wanted him. It was a fact.

She's playing hard to get, He had told himself repeaditly.

It was just a coy way of hers to get him to not stop thinking about her.

He shook his head mentally, she wasn't _that _smart.

Natsume wondered past another shop, his thoughts still unconvincing. He let out a sigh of frustration, _Just stop thinking about it, and it'll go away. _He told himself, running a hand through his almost pitch black hair. He figured it was probably a good idea to head back to the Koizumi's now, He didn't want to leave Ruka to thwart off Luna all by himself. That was just cruel.

He made his way towards the street where he was living, ignoring the flirty glances numerous girls of numerous ages were throwing him. He walked up the white marble steps to the front door, mentally kicking himself as he remembered that he had forgotten his spare key. He knocked on the door and it swung open for him to see a tall blonde with piercing eyes, her face molded into a scowl and her arms crossed over her chest.

"Luna, What crawled up your ass and died?" Natsume drawled, pushing past her and dropping his bag by the door, before kicking off his shoes and placing them on the shoe rack.

Luna ignored his comment and placed a hand on the stair case rail, deliberately blocking his way.

"You went on a date with Mikan?" It was more of a statement than a question.

"And?" He said, now returning her glare. "How did _you _find out?"

Luna tucked a whisp of blonde hair behind her ear, "Mikan isn't a very good liar, Hyuuga."

There was a pregnant pause before Luna spoke again, "Did you kiss her?" She asked, raising a thin eyebrow.

Natsume was thrown with the sudden question, "No." He said bluntly. it wasn't a lie, he hadn't kissed her. _She _kissed _him_.

Luna let out a sigh of relief, "Good." She turned to walk back to her room when Natsume's voice stopped her.

"Jealous, are we?"

Luna scoffed and spun around, pointing a finger at his chest. "_As if_. **That** was at least a million years ago and I can _assure _you that I am well over you."

"Then why do you care if I kissed her or not?" A smirk surfaced his handsome face.

Luna rolled her eyes and laughed bitterly, "Believe it or not, Hyuuga." She started, "There are some things even _you _don't know." Natsume snorted at this. "Now, I'm going to ask you kindly the first time, stay away from Mikan. You know nothing about her and we all know how you treat girls you're "interested" in." She made air quotes around 'interested'

"I can't believe you still use _air quotes_."

"And I can't believe you, _period._"

"Whatever," He pushed passed her and made his way up to the room he was staying in.

"By the way," Luna called up sweetly. "Dinners' in ten."

It didn't need to be said that dinner was tense. If there was anything Natsume Hyuuga hated it was not knowing, And as he watched Luna sit across from him like a smug kitten he found the desire to know more about Mikan growing bigger and bigger. _Sorry Luna, _He grinned mentally, _But now I'm __**really**__ interested in little Mikan Sakura._

* * *

><p><em>and the boys go on and on and on and on<em>

_and the boys go on and on and on and on_

_and there's gold falling from the ceiling of this world_

_falling from the heartbeat of this girl_

Mikan floated across her apartment, Humming to her favorite song. She was in a dreamy mood, After coming back from ballet she had a long bath and lit some aromatherapy candles around the bathroom. She breathed in the smell of vanilla bean and cinnamon again. These were the times she enjoyed being alone with her thoughts.

Her iPod speakers bleared the lyrics again

_and the boys go on and on and on and on_

The childish yet melodic voice of Julia Stone was one of her favorites. She sung along to the soothing song, twirling along her apartment. She lay down on her bed, December was slowly creeping up, and so was her show. Jinno had said so himself, If she wanted to be Odette she would have to step it up a notch. Hana Yome from a school twenty minutes away from Alice was also trying for the part of Odette. It was an even competition, but Hana Yome had been known to be one of the best ballerinas in town. Mikan had never met her before, but had heard from friends who had that she was a lovely joker of a girl. Hard to hate, basically. Not that Mikan wanted to hate her, she was almost relieved to know Hana would be a friendly competition.

_Falling from my heart _

She fell back on her pillows, grabbing a pink one and hugging it. Then there was Natsume, She wasn't sure of what she though of him just yet. It was wrong to kiss him, She shouldn't have done that. It made a lot of things more complicated. She had ended up spilling to Luna that Natsume was the one she was going on a date with after four periods of interrogation. She managed to hide that she had snogged his face off from both Hotaru and Luna. She hadn't seen him or talked to him since their 'date' and she planned to keep it that way for a while. If she was going to be completely honest, His attitude was so arrogant, smug and pessimistic it couldn't be helped that he pissed her off most times he opened his big fat gob. But then he would say something or look at her in a way that made her want to hug him and never let go, her heart would slightly slam against her rib cage and her cheeks would feel hot. She wasn't that dense to not know that she was indeed falling for the stud. But if possible, she was hoping that spending time away from him would stop this school-girl crush of hers.

She reached over to turn off her lamp, switching the iPod speakers off as well. Yawning, she crawled under the duvet cover and closed her eyes gently. Her semi-dry brown hair sprawled out beneath her, and her one and only teddy bear (Who was cleverly named 'Mr. Bear') was in a lock by her arms. She soon was in a deep dream, her breathing shallow and a small smile appearing on her rose petal lips.

* * *

><p><strong>WoO. Sorry for such a long time to update! I've been really busy, the chapter is short but don't worry, The next one will be EXTRA long. Although it might not be uploaded for the next three weeks or so, I finish school in two weeks and it's assignment and test after another ): Then I'm spending a week with my Dad in Hong Kong so I don't think I'll get time to upload then. But I should be active again during mid July. I hope you enjoy this chapter even though it's not action packed and laid back, I thought I'd do a chapter of thoughts every once in a while, So you get to see things in different perspectives. The reason why Mikan didn't want to kiss Natsume will be touched again later, If you're still wondering.<strong>

**And thank you for all the reviews! I read them and i love you all, thank you.**

**The song is called And The Boys by Angus and Julia stone. **

**Disclaimer; I don't own Gakuen Alice and stuff**


	6. Chapter 6

November quickly turned into December and normally, Mikan would spend Christmas with Luna and her family, then New Years with Hotaru and her family. New years day happened to coincide with her birthday, and Mrs. and Mr. Imai had no problem celebrating it to the fullest extent. Unlike their stoic daughter, they were full of laughter and joy. Secretly, Mikan was envious of Hotaru and her family. She longed for a happy family and was momentarily sad when she thought about it. Today, She found herself visiting the graveyard near her apartment. She had stopped along the way at a florist, and ordered a dozen Sweet Wiliiams'.

She had hated cemeteries since she was little, the atmosphere was too tense, too depressing for her.

Normally she would avoid it like the plague.

Except for today, Today she had the strange urge to visit a grave all too familiar to her.

Mikan made her way to a gravestone half way down the cemetery. The graveyard was cold and damp, it made Mikan shudder. She crouched down near the gravestone that read 'Here lies Yuka and Izumi Yukihara. Beloved Father, Mother, Son, Daughter and friend.' and placed the Sweet Williams' by the grave. She silently sat cross legged, directly in front of the gravestone.

"Hey." She croaked out, drawing circles in the dirt with her finger. She felt the familiar pain wash over her chest and wiped her cheeks furiously.

"I said I wouldn't cry." She laughed bitterly. "But i guess I couldn't help myself, huh?"

She bit her lip, staring at the Sweet Williams. The familiar memory of her father bringing home a bouquet of them for her mother often, filled Mikan's head. She swallowed thickly and rubbed her palms on her jeans.

"You know what." She started, looking into the grey sky. "They told me 'it would get easier' over time, but to be honest, It really hasn't. I feel like it's gotten worse."

She paused slightly, "Not that it's your fault, of course." She said hurriedly, "I mean, It wasn't your fault that… that happened. Oh god." She groaned, feeling the prickling feeling in her eyes, "I'm not crying ok, I just ate something spicy and it's having an effect on me."

She breathed in shakily.

"I'm really lonely." Mikan confessed, "I mean, I have Hotaru and Luna and they're great, they really are. But… they're not my family. They're the closest i'll ever get, but not _family-_family, you know?. Anyway," She changed the subject quickly. "I'm doing okay at school, ballet too. Jinno says I have the part of Odette in the bag. I mean, he didn't really say those exact words, but basically I won't get replaced, I've got the main character on a firm leash." She finished proudly. "Hmm, what else." She pondered, before deciding to just let everything ramble out of her. "I finish school next year, Soon we'll all be adults, experiencing the real world and all that. Hotarus really grown into a wonderful woman, I can see her being head honcho at some big business, She's so mature and beautiful. I remember you really liked her when I brought her home that day, You thought '_Wow, if Mikans going to be friends with such an intelligent young girl, there might be hope for her after all.' _Sometimes I thought you'd rather have Hotaru as your daughter, than me. But then I realized, of course you love me and want me, _Everyone_ loves Hotaru, thats just how it is. I can see why you liked her so much, I love her like a sister, I really do. And Luna…" Mikan laughed slightly, "She's Luna, as always. Sharp tongue, likes boys, to party etc. She's beautiful too, sometimes I feel like I don't compare to those two, they're just so stunning I feel like a weed amongst roses. _All_ the boys look at them." She hesitated, "Well, not _all_ of them…There is one boy, I think I might like. But he seems like trouble, Papa wouldn't like him. He's okay, really rude most times and then out of no where he says something… i don't know, romantic? " She broke off, not knowing what to say next.

And then for once in her life, Mikan didn't feel like talking. She sat there looking at the gravestone of her deceased parents. Without any notice, she let her tears clumsily pour.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." She blubbered "I just… I'm sorry, I'm a crybaby i know. I'm sorry. I really just need a hug."

And she sat there crying, she silently cried and cried, she wailed every now and then, but she mostly cried. She didn't notice the warm arms wrapping around her until she heard the quiet hushing in her ear, She turned her tear stained face towards the warm arm's owner, to look into gentle blue eyes. Beside the blue eyes were silent violet ones, gently stroking her back.

"How did you find me?" Mikan hiccuped

Luna smiled, "We went to your apartment and there was no one home, Hotaru and I figured there was only one other place you could be."

"Other than the food hall." Hotaru said gently

"Oh." She replied lamely, still sobbing softly.

Hotaru pulled her up, smiling slightly. "Come on, dummy. I'll buy you some lunch."

Luna grinned and linked arms with Hotaru, "What about me? Will you buy _me _lunch?"

"No." Hotaru replied bluntly,

Mikan laughed at her friends before glancing over her shoulder one more time to look at the gravestone, the dates at the bottom embedded into her mind.

_August 7 1972 - September 19 2005_

_July 19 1974 - October 11 2008._

* * *

><p>"So you're still coming over for New Years, right?" Hotaru asked cooly as she finished her can of crab brains. Luna had a swig of her hot chocolate "And mine for Christmas?" She added<p>

"Mmhmm." Mikan replied, mouth full of fried rice. She swallowed, "Thats the plan. Speaking of, What would you guys like for Christmas?"

Christmas was only four days away, and as always, Mikan had left shopping to the last minute. "Crab brains." Hotaru replied just as Luna said, "Usual."

Mikan quickly went over what 'Usual' was for Luna, that normally meant make-up, clothes, shoes or accessories. As for crab brains, She was sure she had a can in her fridge at home.

"What about you, Mikan?" Luna asked, "Anything you got your eye on?"

Mikan shook her head, "It's enough of a gift that you guys let me stay over for the holidays, I'm not going to spoil myself any further than necessary."

"And there's absolutely _nothing _you would like for Christmas?" Hotaru asked, an eyebrow raised.

Mikan hesitated, there was somethingshe wanted. On her way to school through Central she had spotted a cute pastel purple dress, long sleeved and flowed out gently before the knee. But Mikan would rather save up for it than be given it. "Nope." She replied, popping the 'p'

Luna and Hotaru exchanged glances, "Alright then." Luna drawled, "Nothing for you, then."

"Nothing." Mikan confirmed, taking her last bites of rice.

"So." Luna changed the topic, "What are we doing tonight?"

"Nothing with me, I've got night classes tonight." Hotaru replied, Luna rolled her eyes. "I don't understand why you even take night classes, isn't the long six hours in the day enough?"

Hotaru raised her eyebrows, "I'm not even going to bother to reply, Luna."

"Whatever," Luna brushed Hotaru off and turned to MIkan, "So I guess it's just you and me, Mikan?"

Mikan looked at Luna before sighing, "Yeah, okay." Luna smiled triumphantly, her bright blue eyes glittering. "Well," She started, standing up in her leather jeans and black beau coups, she wore those beau coups everywhere. Except of course, to school. "Let's go then, hot stuff."

"Right, Yeah." Mikan grabbed her bag and leant over to hug Hotaru, "Bye Hotaru" She smiled, Hotaru nodded in response.

"Ciao" Luna waved, already half way down the street

Mikan ran up and fell into step with Luna, "So." She started, leaning her face forward to glance at Luna, Her long brown hair falling over her shoulders. "What are we doing?"

Luna grinned, "Oh, well, I thought we could go a little old school and have a nice sleepover at mine, we can even walk down to the video shop and get out _The Lion King_ if you want."

Mikan shot a sidelong look at Luna, "Really?" She asked suspiciously, "No parties tonight or something?"

Luna scoffed, "Only Lina's, but like I'd give her the satisfaction of turning up at _her _party. Besides, even I like to have nights in."

"Yeah, Right." Mikan rolled her eyes, "I don't have any pajamas or anything though."

Luna waved a hand dismissively, "You can just borrow some of my brother's old t-shirts."

They walked up the clean marble steps to Luna's house, Still as pristine as ever. Pushing the key through the lock, Luna opened the door and kicked off her shoes. "I'm home!" She called out.

Mikan slid off her shoes and placed them by the door, "Mikans' staying the night, too." Luna added, hanging her bag on the end of the staircase rail.

"Oh!" A high voice called, followed by the sound of footsteps, "Mikan!" A tall blonde woman came and hugged her, "I feel like I haven't seen you since forever! You're still staying for Christmas, aren't you, love?"

Mikan grinned at Luna's mother. "Of course, Wouldn't miss it for the world."

Luna rolled her eyes and grabbed Mikan's wrist, "We're going upstairs now."

"Are you having dinner?"

"We'll probably order pizza or something." Luna replied, already halfway through her bedroom door.

Luna's room was one fit for a princess, she had a Queen sized bed, with a light purple duvet and crisp white pillows. The floor was wooden and a faux fur rug sat next to her bed. Her closet took up the wall opposite her bed, the _entire _wall. Luna's collection of designer clothes was never-ending. Luna's mother was an interior designer, so she always had one of the most marvelous rooms Mikan had ever seen. When they were kids MIkan had been exceptionally jealous of Luna's Disney princess themed room, complete with a _Sleeping Beauty _canopy.

"Well?" Luna prodded, shutting the door and leaning on it, looking at Mikan with wide eyes and a dangerous grin.

"Huh?" Mikan's eyebrows creased, "What? What is it?"

"What do you want to do, Dumbass?"

Mikan stared back at Luna confused, normally they did what Luna felt like doing. "What do I…? What do I want to do?"

Luna rolled her eyes and grabbed her phone, "It's 8:30," She said, mostly to herself. She then looked at Mikan again and took a step closer. "Well. Since I am a giving and all around _wonderful _friend, I'm going to let you decide what we do tonight!"

Mikan's eye brows raised, "Yeah?"

"Yeah." Luna confirmed

"Then." Mikan started, wandering around the room until eventually landing on Luna's soft bed. "Then I actually do want to go to the DVD store and get out _the Lion King._ And I want to watch it while I stuff my face with extra buttery-popcorn, and maybe some candyfloss -"

"Where are we going to get candyfloss?" Luna frowned

"I'm speaking." Mikan stated, "And then, I want to actually make those bloody friendship bracelets that we've been meaning to do since we were _eleven._ Just to get it over and done with, and of course later I want to play truth or dare, without the dare part."

"So just truth?" Luna replied monotonously

"Yeah," Mikan bit her lip thoughtfully. "Then… Then…. I don't know, then we can do what you want to do. Like usual."

"All right." Luna shrugged, "Go grab one of Rei's shirts to sleep in then, then we can go down to the video shop."

Mikan walked down the hallway and knocked on Rei's door, "Yo!" She called.

The door opened and Mikan found herself looking at a half naked Natsume, slightly disgruntled and sleepy looking. "What?" He peered down at her, after he got over the initial shock of seeing Mikan.

"Ah." Mikan stuttered, tearing her eyes away from Natsume's lean torso. "Isn't this Rei's room…?"

"He moved to the attic, What do you want?" He asked bluntly.

Mikan frowned, "Don't be so rude! I came here to borrow one of Rei's shirts but _clearly_-"

"Wait here." Natsume stated, turning back into the room and returning with a black jumper. "It's all I've got thats remotely clean, give it back later, okay?"

"Ah - Oh okay," Mikan said, surprised. She peered into his room, "Where's Ruka?"

"He's in the guest room, We aren't _sharing _a room, Princess." Natsume scoffed

Mikan felt her heart thump slightly at the small nickname she had accuaried from Natsume. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a guitar in the corner of his room. "Is that a guitar? Do you play?"

"Why are you so goddamn nosy?" Natsume asked irritatedly, "Just leave."

Mikan gaped at him, "It was a simple question, ass-wipe! No need to be such a jerk about it." And with that she turned on her heel and stormed back into Luna's room, hearing the soft slam of Natsume's door.

"I don't know _how _you put up with him." Mikan stated, putting the jumper on one of Luna's pillows.

"Who?" Luna asked lightly, applying a bit of gloss to her lips.

"Natsume, of course!" Mikan fumed, "He is such a loser."

"_Oh_." Luna replied, turning to face Mikan. "Says the one who went on a _date _with him."

Mikan gaped at Luna, "That was ages ago! Besides you _know_ that it was practically forced!"

"Yeah, yeah. Let's go get your stupid movie and food then."

* * *

><p>"I thought it was a but suspicious that you wanted to go the video shop despite my previous attempts to get you to go there with me before." Mikan said in between mouthfuls of popcorn. On the way down to the shops, Mikan had learnt that the real reason behind the sudden <em>Lion King <em>idea was that Luna had the hots for the new boy working at the store. Mikan had to admit he was rather hunky, Full lips and mischevious green eyes. His hair was a ash blonde, and he had a tall, athletic build. Through the fifteen minutes of outrageous flirting between the two, Luna had gained a number and name to the boy. He was called Keito or Kaitou or something. Mikan had been too busy sneaking more food past Luna to take notice.

"Can you blame me?" Luna asked, batting her eyelashes coyly. "He is a complete _babe_."

"True." Mikan agreed.

Luna shot Mikan a sidelong look, "Don't go moving in on my man now."

Mikan let out a laugh, "Oh, _No_ Luna, he is totally not my type."

"Whereas sulky looking boys who are permanently on PMS are?" Mikan rolled her eyes, Luna already knew there was nothing between her and Natsume and yet she still enjoyed tormenting her.

"Shut up, this is my favorite part." Mikan said, smacking a hand over Luna's mouth.

This was her favorite part though, and probably one of her favorite disney songs too. It was when Nala and Simba had finally met again, and Elton John's _'Can you feel the love tonight' _played through the background. The mushy scene made Mikan's inside twist and turn in delight.

She took a deep breath inwards and cast a mischievous look at Luna, who's eyes widened.

"Don't." She warned, but it was too late. Mikan had already begun.

"And Caaaaaaaaaaaan you feeeeeeeeeeeel the loooooove toniiiiiiight!" She sung hideously off tune, "IT is where we arrrrrrrrrrrrrrre!"

Luna's hands covered her ears, wincing in pain. "Oh my _god_ this had to be one of my worst ideas."

"It's enough for this wiiiiiiide eyeeeeed-"

A loud slam was heard as Luna's door was flung open, and there stood a rather ticked off Natsume.

"What." He growled, "Is fucking dying in here?"

"My ears." Luna groaned, rolling around on her bed.

Mikan stood up and frowned at Natsume, "I was singing, thank you very much!"

"Oh." Natsume said amusedly, "Is that what you call it?"

"Why? Can you do any better?" Mikan retorted tartly.

"Mikan." Natsume said slowly, leaning in so he was closer to her face. "A monkey, could do better."

Luna snorted and Natsume let out a grin, Mikan however had a mix of shock and anger plastered on her face. Natsume's eyes skimmed down Mikan, she had changed into the charcoal jumper he had lent her earlier, he hadn't expected her to look so cute in it. Of course she was small and the jumper almost touched her knees, the sleeves reached far past her fingertips and the neckline was a little bit lower than average.

"You look good." He said, "Come to my room if you ever get bored of posh tots here."

Mikan blushed at the obvious innuendo. Luna threw a pillow at him and yelled at him to 'Shut up and leave." and added a string of curses with it.

"In answer as to your question before" Luna started, "I don't put up with him, I ignore and try to avoid him as much as possible."

"Fair enough."

"Now." Luna grabbed the remote and switched the TV off, "Enough of this crap, lets play Truth."

"_The Lion King _is definitely not crap." Mikan said defensively.

"Whatever, _Princess._" Luna cooed mockingly, She then grinned " 'Come to my room if you ever need to,' " She said huskily, wiggling her eyebrows and clearly mocking Natsume.

Mikan laughed. "Oh _Shut up._ Lets play truth already." She said, facing Luna cross legged.

"Okay, You first."

"Ummm…." Mikan pondered, "How far have you been with a boy?"

Luna looked at her oddly, "What are we, fourteen? Besides you already know."

"So!" Mikan whined, "It's fun, just tell me again like I know nothing whatsoever!"

"Ugh, okay I have gone all the way with this boy I met when I was fifteen in Okinawa, happy?"

Mikan giggled, She already knew Luna wasn't a virgin but she still liked hearing the story of her summer romance with 'Hiro from Okinawa'. Mikan hadn't lost her "precious gift" yet, mostly due to her lack of love life over her teen years.

She wasn't truly bothered by it though. "Aw, you just know how much of a sucker I am for flings, Lu."

"Right, Right." Luna said airily, "Okay my turn, do you like Natsume?"

"Luna. We've been over this before." Mikan deadpanned, grabbing Luna's Stitch plushie and hugging it.

"Not in Truth, we haven't." Luna reasoned.

Mikan flushed slightly, "Ah well." She started, now that she was seriously thinking about it… Did she like Natsume? He certainly made her heart thump, that was for sure. But he could also be the biggest douche she'd ever met. "Probably…"She murmured. "Probably not."

Luna grinned at Mikan, "So you _like _him! I knew it! I knew it!" She sang.

"Oh god, Lu. I don't know! Don't say anything okay, our last date was tragic honestly."

"Oh?"

"Yes, _Oh. I kissed the guy!"_

"You kissed him? Was he good?"

"Fantastic, but thats not the point. How do I know he's not just, you know, playing me? I guess."

"Oh yeah, I could do some love stalking if you want me to?"

"No! God no! I don't even know if I like the guy yet." Mikan protested.

"Well, when you find out." Luna said, getting under the covers of her bed. "Remember who's house he's living in, okay?"

"Okay." Mikan replied meekly, following Luna's actions.

"Hey, Luna?" Mikan mumbled into the pillow.

"What?"

"Don't, you know, _tell _him or anything."

Luna gasped, "How could you even think I'd do such a thing?"

"I'm just making sure!" Mikan replied.

"I'm hurt, mikan."

"Hey, Luna?"

"What, now?"

"You're my best friend."

A few seconds of silence passed before Luna rolled over and patted Mikan's head softly. "I know." She smiled.

* * *

><p><strong>I can't honestly tell if this is long because I'm using a program where all the formatting is messed up but my fingers hurt and I owed you all an update. Although I was a little bit lazy towards the end :\<strong>

**Thank you for the reviews again! **

**I like the idea of friendship between Luna and Mikan, I think it's cute.**

**By the way, the reason why Luna isn't as cynical to Natsume and Mikan's relationship is because she still really liked him and was sore, but of course she's moved on to many otherboys since then. So she has let go of Natsume.**

**x**


	7. Chapter 7

Mikan felt a bead of sweat slowly trickle down the small of her back, she fought the urge to wriggle uncomfortably, knowing it would cost her. Jinno would make her do more painful exercises again if she even moved an inch out of line. After what seemed like an eternity, Jinno's sharp voice cut the tension.

"Very good, you may go." He said dully, almost dismissively.

"Thanks Jin-Jin." Mikan replied, her voice noticeably contrasted against Jinno's harsh tongue.

She leaned to reach for her pink duffle bag, before slinging it over her shoulder and making her way out of the studio. She breathed a sigh of relief and lightly patted her heart, that lesson had been pure torture; one of the worst! She reached into her pocket to read a new message from Reo.

_Mikan! _

_Sorry but we really need you down here tonight, Misaki's fallen sick and can't make it!_

_I'll pay you double the hour, Pleeease _

Mikan rolled her eyes and typed a reply back, Misaki Harada was a girl who she had some shifts with occasionally. She was a flirty pink haired girl who was a few years Mikan's senior, Misaki was great to be around and always a good laugh. Mikan really enjoyed spending time with her, she made work a whole lot more fun. She made a mental note to send her a get well txt later.

_Reo, Of course I'll be there in a few! I expect that double pay though ;)_

_in cash please x_

_(. _≧_ 0_≦_ ) ;; _

_Mikan You're my savior! thank you!_

_(and cash up front, who are you? Hotaru?) _

Mikan let out a small laugh and made her way to the club, stopping at a mini-mart to buy some water and candy.

"What are you doing here?"

Mikan looked up from a row of howalons and raised her eyebrow at a certain Natsume. "You know, you're not king. I _can_ go into a store without your permission."

Natsume looked away in irritation and then back again, "I know, I meant what are here at this time of the night? It's dangerous you know."

Mikan frowned, "It's like, what? 7:30? Besides, if its so dangerous why are _you _out?"

"I can defend myself." Natsume said bluntly, reaching into the freezer behind Mikan and pulling out a Coke.

"And I can't?"

"You're a girl."

"I realize this."

"Stop being so difficult, why are you out?" Natsume repeated.

Mikan turned away and gathered her things, "Someone forgot to lock my cage." She droned sarcastically before leaving the mart. Natsume followed behind her after quickly thrusting a twenty dollar bill in the store owner's hand.

"Mikan." He growled.

"Alright sour puss, I'm going to my job okay?"

"Your job?" Natsume's brow furrowed.

"The one at the club." Mikan said cooly, forcing herself not to blush.

"Oh." Natsume put his arm around her shoulders before gently cooing in her ear "The one at the club." He grinned.

"Shove off."

"You liked it."

"_You _liked it." She countered.

"I know, I did." He replied, "And you liked it too."

Mikan let out a sigh of relief when she saw she was almost at Reo's club. "I didn't like it that much, It wasn't the best kiss y'know." She lied.

"What?" Natsume's grip on her shoulders dropped and he quickly stepped in front of her, "What?" He echoed.

"It wasn't the best kiss…" Mikan repeated evenly, This boy clearly thought he was the end all and be all.

"What wasn't good about it then?"

"It was good, Natsume. Honestly, don't worry about it."

"I _am _worrying about it, what wasn't good about it?"

Seeing no way around this, Mikan gave in. "It just wasn't areal mind-blowing, toe-curling, bells ringing, fireworks in the sky kind of kiss."

Natsume frowned, "Um. Sorry then, let me make it up to you."

"Make it up to me?"

Natsume pulled Mikan to the nearest wall and caged her in with his arms, he looked at her intently with his red eyes and that alone was enough to make her go weak. He got closer, dangerously closer. She couldn't drag herself to pull away, her heart slamming against her chest, the romantic in her wanted to throw her arms around his neck and run her hand through those soft black locks. But she was caught up in his face, like a prey to predator. His face looked serious and yet beautiful, something out of a painting. His hair fell over his eyes just the right amount, and his nose was long and slender. She noticed his jaw tighten and a glimpse of cheekbones prominent on his features. And his eyes, Oh his _eyes_, They were stunning and enough to make any girl melt. His eyes oozed with seductive intent. He licked his lips and a rough hand came down from next to her face and onto her waist, and before she could protest he had started nibbling on her bottom lip.

"Oh." Mikan whimpered, She could feel him smirk against her lips, _Arrogant jerk._

He ran his tongue along her lips before tugging her bottom lip with his teeth. Meanwhile his hands crept round to her lower back, pulling Mikan closer to him. Her stomach was beginning to feel floaty and her head heavy.

"Natsume." She hissed.

He quietly hushed her before smoothly pressing his lips against hers, coaxing them lustfully.

He was surprisingly gentle compared to before, Mikan noticed. Her thoughts were becoming misty as soon as she started to kiss him back, _finally _tugging him closer by clasping her fingertips in his hair, grabbing small tuffs and combing through his soft black hair.

He pulled away, slightly panting. "Do you _have _to go to work?"

Mikan pouted at the loss of his lips and stared longingly at his mouth, "Yeah."

Natsume kissed her again, "Maybe I should work with you."

"Maybe." Mikan said hazily before pulling him back to her and kissing him all over again. She was definitely feeling _this_ in her toes, this kiss made her want more and more. His lips trailed to her jaw and she giggled.

"What?" He asked, amused.

"I'm ticklish there!" She laughed.

He nipped at her nose and kissed both her temples before loosening her, "Time you got to work then?"

Mikan straightened herself out and nodded, "Yep."

"Was that mind-blowing enough for you?"

"Maybe." Mikan replied cheekily before heading down the stairs to the club entrance.

"Tease!" He yelled.

* * *

><p>"Why are you in such good mood?" Nobara asked, "You haven't had anything to drink have you?"<p>

Mikan laughed, "No! Of course not, Reo would kill me."

"Good." Nobara said, leaning over the bar table to pass another beer to the guy who had been ogling her for half an hour. "Now pass me a Howalon, fatty."

"I'm not fat." Mikan frowned, popping another fluff puff in her mouth before pushing the box towards her friend.

"Of course not, Mikan. You just eat like someone who is. Honestly, how do you keep a figure when you eat so much junk?"

"Jin-Jin has me on a tight schedule." Mikan rolled her eyes, "Someone needs to buy that man a puppy or something."

"Sounds like it." Nobara replied.

Nobara Ibarigi worked every shift she could, after Luna and Hotaru she was one of Mikan's best friends. Nobara was a year older than her, a full time college student and had recently moved in with her boyfriend Rei. She was a very pretty girl, with shoulder lenth deep blue hair that curled at the ends that was paired with a messy fringe. She had big doe eyes which reminded Mikan of the ocean in winter. She could sometimes be very cold and moody - _especially _on PMS, but generally was a loyal friend - although a guarded one at that. Nobara had once told Mikan she had been called 'The Snow Woman' in Middle school because of her shy demeanor and icy looks. It was apparent she had only a few friends through school life, and met Rei during the first few months of college. She was smitten with him. Mikan had never seen Rei, he had only visited Nobara's work a few times - and that had been when Mikan wasn't working with her. According to Misaki he was a very tall, intimidating man, but very handsome - Piercing black eyes, and a slender face. Apparently he had a shifty business outside of college, Nobara wouldn't let anymore slip a part from the fact it had nothing to do with drugs or gangs.

"Sometimes he's really nice though," Mikan started, as she took an empty stray glass and started washing it. "One time Hotaru had a fever, and he let me have an hour of a lesson to go nurse her."

Nobara shrugged and pulled herself up onto the bar, "He sounds like a little bit of a priss, Mikan. But whatever you say, I guess."

At around 1am, Mikan's shift ended and she changed into her normal clothes before heading up the stairs to the street. Normally Reo drove her home, but he had to stay later tonight and she wanted to get some rest earlier, so she decided to walk despite being shit scared of dodgy guys.

"Oi." A rough voice called out to her, but Mikan kept walking.

She heard footsteps behind her come closer into earshot, "Oi!" The voice repeated, she felt a tug at her arm and was about to scream when she realized who was holding her.

"Natsume!" Mikan cried, her heart struggling to stop pounding. "You almost gave me a heart attack, What are you _doing?_"

"I figured I'd walk you home." Natsume replied bluntly

"So you waited around until my shift was over?" She raised a brow, "Are you mental?"

"Probably." Natsume shrugged before slipping his hand into hers and pulling her forward with him.

"Natsume?" Mikan asked confused, "Why are you holding my hand?"

Natsume snorted, "So you don't get lost, little girl."

Right, Mikan felt a ping of disappointment, their kiss before was just him proving that he was the King of Kisses. Nothing special, not to him anyway.

Mikan shrugged off her sudden funk to retort, "I'm not little! I'm almost eighteen, you know."

"Well, I _am _eighteen. So I wonder who won that round." He looked back to smirk at her slightly.

She felt her breath hitch in her throat when he looked at her, "Really? When was your birthday then?"

"November 27" He replied shortly.

"It just passed then!" Mikan gasped, "I missed it."

"It's fine, I didn't want to do anything anyway."

"It's _not _fine, Birthdays are meant to be celebrated by everybody!"

"Theres always next year."

"Next year then, You'll have the best birthday ever. I promise." Mikan stopped and held out her pinky, Natsume stared at it like she was ludicrous.

"What?" He asked.

"I'm promising you something! Put out your pinky, Natsume!"

Reluctantly Natsume took out his pinky and entwined it with Mikans. Her face lit up and she grinned up at him, "Next November 27 will be the best."

"It's a date then." Natsume said.

"R-right." Mikan stuttered, taken aback by the word 'date'

"Let's go then." Natsume said, taking back his pinky and pulling Mikan back to her apartment.

He was about to leave when she called out to him, "Why don't you stay at mine tonight?"

Natsume whipped his head towards her, eyes widened. Mikan blushed furiously, "Not like _that, _God, Natsume! I was just thinking, It's late and you're probably tired. Luna's house is a forty minute walk from here a-and so…" She trailed off.

Natsume turned to her and hesitated, "Alright then."

"Right, Uh." Mikan stuttered, "Um, Are you okay with sleeping on the couch? You can sleep in my Dad's old clothes if you want."

"I'm fine with it, Can we go inside now? It's cold out here."

"Right." Mikan nodded, Natsume followed her into the apartment as she turned the lights on and dropped her bag on the ground. "Make yourself at home." She said cheerily before disappearing into a room and emerging with a pair of black pj pants and a white t-shirt. "Is this ok?"

"Great." Natsume nodded, he took the clothes and went to her bathroom to change. Mikan did the same, putting on her most modest pajamas - a pair of pink pajama bottoms and a long sleeved white top. She opened a cabinet in the laundry and brought out a few blankets before placing them on the long couch. She had taken one of her pillows and placed it on the end, ready for Natsume.

He came out looking exhausted, "Thanks for letting me stay, Mikan."

She nodded, playing with her hands nervously behind her back. "It's fine."

"Is anybody else here?"

Mikan felt something cold run down her back and her mood snapped from nervous to guarded. "No."

"Do you live by yourself then?"

"Yes." She replied shortly, walking in the direction of her room - signaling that this conversation was over.

"Where are your parents?" He pressed, sitting comfortably down on the couch.

"Where are _yours_?" Mikan snapped before thinking, then automatically regretted it. His eyes changed to an icy glare and he pulled a blanket up to him.

"I didn't mean to -" Mikan started.

"It's fine." Natsume muttered bluntly.

"I'm so sorr-"

"Goodnight, Mikan." He said coldly, before turning his back away from her and turning off the lamp next to him.

Mikan felt miserable, She was such an idiot! Luna had told her that his Natsume's parents were missing, and yet she had to open her big fat mouth and hurt him. Damnit, She thought. She wanted to hit herself, how could she be so oblivious!

She tossed and turned in her bed that night, rehearsing her apology to Natsume for the morning.

* * *

><p>Hello! Sorry I haven't updated in yonks! I have some exams coming up and I have also been exceptionally lazy. I haven't proof read this yet so if there are any mistakes please bare with me! I wrote this at 2 in the morning with a <strong>very<strong> hazy mind.

Please review! :3


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